Clashes that shook southern Syria this week have killed hundreds of people, including civilians, and drawn in an array of both local and international players, harking back to the dynamics of the country’s nearly 14-year civil war.

“The Israeli Druze are now trying to use that and urge the Israeli government to protect fellow Druze in Syria,” he said, explaining, in part, the justification for Israel’s strikes on Syria, where the Druze community has traditionally been anti-Israel, even as some leaders grow closer to Israel.

Israel’s demand for a demilitarized zone in southern Syria and its promise to protect the Druze minority are putting it in deepening conflict with the new regime in Damascus.

Israel escalated attacks under pretext of protecting Druze as conflict spreads in southern Syria - Anadolu Ajansı

Members of Syria's Druze community are searching for loved ones and counting their dead after days of clashes in a southern province that left bloodied bodies of civilians on the streets and homes loo

KHALIL ASHAWI / REUTERS Israel said on Friday, July 18, it was sending humanitarian aid to Syria's Sweida province, following days of deadly clashes in the Druze heartland. "In light of the recent attacks targeting the Druze community in Sweida and the ...

Army says there were no further crossings overnight, is working to patch up holes in fence; Kurdish official urges Sharaa to rethink approach to minorities

Israel says it's trying to protect the Druze community in south-west Syria, where there have been deadly sectarian clashes.